Four days had passed since we escaped the Hospital, and still no sign of Ledger.
The second we made it into the forest we originally camped out in, my Pokémon helped me dig a large hole in the ground, right below a large bush. Well it started off as a hole wide enough for an adult to comfortably drop down into, but then we managed to create a burrow underneath it, slightly smaller than my bed back at home.
We covered the top with various twigs, leaves and moss, and we had ourselves a nice place to hide if anyone came looking for us.
The search for Ledger continued as well, and because I thought it was too risky to search myself, good old Banjo went and searched for most of the day. He was the only one that could search without being suspicious, as he was the only Pokémon sort of native to this area. He spent most of the day searching, and came back in the afternoon with handfuls of berries that we all shared in the burrow.
It certainly was a squeeze in that burrow, but we weren't complaining. If were safe from people, then we were happy.
At first, my Pokémon didn't like the fact that I was pretty much a criminal now, but they 'saw the light' when I gave them the full picture.
Although just as risky as me searching for Ledger, my Pokémon took it upon themselves to train everyday, as I watched from the burrow.
I could feel that Banjo and Ricki were close to evolving, they actually made an effort to train themselves more then ever now we were in this current situation.
And what do you know, later one afternoon, Ricki started glowing.
Excitedly, I pulled out my Pokédex.
Luxio, the Spark Pokémon, said the Pokédex as Ricki checked out her new body, Strong electricity courses through the tips of its sharp claws. A light scratch causes fainting in foes.
"Awesome!" I said cheerfully, putting the dex away, "now all we need is to..."
I stopped when I heard footsteps in the distance.
"Okay guys, let's test out this burrow!" I whispered, and we all jumped down the hole in the ground, with Jasmine covered it up with the lid made of nature.
Hardly daring to breath, although it was stuffy down in the cramped burrow. As the footsteps grew closer, I heard voices as well.
"Do ya really think he'd be on this Route?" said one of the voices in a gruff male tone, "this is where he was caught! Surely he wouldn't be stupid enough to hide here again!"
Just what I wanted everyone to think, I thought gleefully.
"Maybe that's just what he wants us to think," said another voice.
Oh screw you, I thought grumpily.
"Still, he hasn't been anywhere else as far as we know," said the first voice. Their voices and footsteps started to fade away.
"Maybe he's already left the country?"
"How could he? No boats or whatnot have been stolen, and I don't think he could Surf on a Croconaw."
"Oh yeah, did you hear about how he got his Pokémon back?"
"Heck yes, that took balls. He's got huge balls."
I struggled to hold in my laughter as the two voices faded into an undistinguishable murmur in the distance.
"Alrighty gang, listen up," I addressed my Pokémon in the cramped burrow later that evening, "we have to get out of Johto by tomorrow night. We need to find Ledger by then, otherwise we leave without him."
My Pokémon looked at each other sadly.
"I know, I know, I miss him a lot too," I sighed, "but either I escape Johto with you four, or I stay here, get caught and get stuck in prison with none of you. I can't lose all my Pokémon."
There was a heavy feeling in the burrow.
"So Goku," I said, turning to the Croconaw, "we need to get you to evolve to your next stage. I hate to force it onto you, but we gotta do it. But only if you're okay with that."
He thought for a moment, then nodded his head.
"Thanks buddy," I said gratefully, "now, here's the plan. We need to raid the Pokémart for Rare Candies and hopefully Hidden Machine Surf. If we don't find it, then, well... you can swim right Goku?"
He nodded indignantly.
"Well hopefully you'll be able to carry me on your back without knowing that move. And now," I said, pulling out everyone's Pokéballs, "I bid you all goodnight."
Later that night, I was woken up by a noise outside.
It sounded like a large group of people, maybe five or six. I could hear their voices clearly, so I listened.
"Alright, he's literally nowhere," said one voice, a female.
"He's gotta be hiding somewhere in Johto," said a male voice angrily, "he can't have escaped the region, we have boats patrolling the waters."
"He could've escaped to Kanto," said a deeper voice. There was an uneasy silence.
"Alright then," said the first male voice, "Will, Karen, you two make sure that messages are sent to each Country asking for them to look out for the criminal."
Will, Karen? These guys must've been the Elite Four themselves, I thought, Wow, fancy that, all four of them looking for little old me.
"Bruno, come with me, we're going to double check his hometown," said who could only be Koga. The sound of their footsteps faded into the distance.
Not knowing what to think, I fell back asleep.
It was the night of the heist. Not knowing what the time was, I cautiously creeped out of the burrow, knowing that it would be the last time I would sleep in it. Walking cautiously through the forest, I eventually came to Route 30, right near Cherrygrove City. It had been ages since i'd been there.
Double checking to make sure that I was wearing all my darkest clothes, I sneaked into the town and over in the direction of the Pokémart.
It was closed, so that meant that it was almost midnight, if not past.
Going around the back where there was no buildings I prepared myself to do the deed in one swift motion.
Here we go, I thought wrapping a shirt around my fist.
Upon breaking the glass, I didn't bother to smooth it out, so I cut myself in several places. Rushing across the room over to the counter, I jumped behind and smashed open the cabinet holding Rare Candies.
Releasing Goku, I wordlessly unwrapped some of the special sweets and he ate them like the greedy thing he was.
I could already here sirens, and I knew that the Cherrygrove Police were coming.
As Goku ate, I searched another cabinet for TMs and HMs. Bingo!
Smashing some more glass, I pulled out the HM and stowed it my pocket for later. I looked over at Goku, and he had already eaten about ten candies.
"C'mon buddy," I murmured, as the Police struggled with the door to the Mart, "c'mon..."
The Police finally broke down the door, but not until Goku started glowing...
"Freeze!" yelled an Officer, but Goku and I were already heading out the back where we broke the window. Goku glowed as he ran, and we rushed to make it to the window before he evolved, as he would never fit...
Before he started growing, I picked him up and threw him out the window. Just in time, because the second he landed on the ground, he started to evolve properly...
"Argh!" I shouted, as and Arcanine came from nowhere and bit my leg hard. I tried to shake it off so I could climb out the window, but he refused to let go...
A massive jet of water whizzed past my ear, and smack bang onto the Arcanine, tearing it from my leg and into a shelf.
Not bothering to wait around, I scrambled out through the window, getting cuts on my cuts.
When I was outside, I saw that Goku had transformed into an awesome, formidable looking Pokémon, standing at seven feet tall. He could now easily carry me through the water.
"Alright Goku, do you think you can you run fast?" The former Croconaw scoffed, and picked me up easily and plonked me onto his back.
"Then let's head that way!" I shouted, pointing at Route 29. It was at this moment that I discovered the speed of this new Pokémon. Tearing away from the Pokémart at speeds I didn't know Goku could run, I clung on for dear life as I heard various Policemen shouting at us.
After half a minute or so, we reached Route 29.
"Alright pal, through these trees!" I shouted, pointing South. Goku made a sharpish turn, and soon he was positively sprinting through the forest.
As we were nearing the ocean, my heart stopped.
"Crap, you still need to learn Surf!" I shouted, frantically waving the HM near his face. He responded by grabbing it in his teeth and threw it away, "Goku?..."
"Feral!" he roared, which I took as being "I don't need a stupid HM to carry you!"
"I hope you're right," I grimaced, and Goku made one last leap into the water.
SPLASH!
"You alright?" I panted, as if i'd done the running. Goku looked back at me, grinning.
"Feraligatr!" he nodded, so I assumed that his new form was just that.
"Okay bud," I said, pulling out my Pokégear for a GPS, one of the Pokégear's newest features, "we need to head... West!"
Goku did just that, and soon we were coming through the water at bigger speeds than before.
"You on the Feraligatr, stop your Pokémon!" Crap, I had forgotten about the water patrol.
"Never!" I shouted, looking behind me. There were two small boats with about four Policemen and their Pokémon on each one.
"You can not escape," said one Officer through a megaphone, "we will pursue until you tire out."
"Come and catch us then," I muttered, "full speed ahead Goku."
We continued on our way. Even though we were going tremendously fast, the boats managed to keep up.
After fifteen minutes, Goku was still going strong. Some more Police boats had joined, from both Johto and Kanto, bringing the total boats to about eight. In the distance, I spotted the Sevii Islands.
"How are you doing bud?" I said, managing to grab a berry from my backpack and feed it to him. He seemed grateful, but was still gradually slowing down.
It could've been over. The Police boats were gaining on us, and we wouldn't get through the Sevii Islands before they surrounded us.
But I had an idea. Grabbing a Pokéball from my backpack, I released onto Goku just in front of me.
"Sorry to call you out like this Ricki," I said, patting her on the head, "but I need you to shock the water behind us." She seemed scared of the suggestion, peering down into the deep water.
"Don't worry, I'll hold your tail," i said reassuringly, and doing just that, the brave Luxio crept around behind me to face the water.
"Wait for it..." I said, waiting for the boats to get closer, "waaaiiit for it..."
The boats were now only fifty metres away.
"GO, DISCHARGE TO THE WATER!" I yelled. This was our only hope.
"LUXIO!" shouted Ricki, hitting the water with a powerful flare of electricity.
The effect was beautiful.
Lighting up all the water behind us, the electricity caused huge waves fused with lightning to crash into the boats, sending them flying in all directions. The 'thunder water' didn't stop there, and I wondered if it'd keep going until it hit shore. It certainly lit up night as much as the sun would.
"Brilliant job Ricki!" I cheered, giving her a one armed hug, "we're on our way to freedom!"
Looking back, I saw the Policemen clambering onto their upturned boats whilst looking at Goku, Ricki and I in disbelief.
As Goku continued swimming throughout the night, I felt many things.
Angry; at Team Rocket for being the cause of this.
Worried; would we be safe in Hoenn?
Sad; I wouldn't see my parents, or Ledger, for a very long time.
Happy; We were free.
At last.
The second we made it into the forest we originally camped out in, my Pokémon helped me dig a large hole in the ground, right below a large bush. Well it started off as a hole wide enough for an adult to comfortably drop down into, but then we managed to create a burrow underneath it, slightly smaller than my bed back at home.
We covered the top with various twigs, leaves and moss, and we had ourselves a nice place to hide if anyone came looking for us.
The search for Ledger continued as well, and because I thought it was too risky to search myself, good old Banjo went and searched for most of the day. He was the only one that could search without being suspicious, as he was the only Pokémon sort of native to this area. He spent most of the day searching, and came back in the afternoon with handfuls of berries that we all shared in the burrow.
It certainly was a squeeze in that burrow, but we weren't complaining. If were safe from people, then we were happy.
At first, my Pokémon didn't like the fact that I was pretty much a criminal now, but they 'saw the light' when I gave them the full picture.
Although just as risky as me searching for Ledger, my Pokémon took it upon themselves to train everyday, as I watched from the burrow.
I could feel that Banjo and Ricki were close to evolving, they actually made an effort to train themselves more then ever now we were in this current situation.
And what do you know, later one afternoon, Ricki started glowing.
Excitedly, I pulled out my Pokédex.
Luxio, the Spark Pokémon, said the Pokédex as Ricki checked out her new body, Strong electricity courses through the tips of its sharp claws. A light scratch causes fainting in foes.
"Awesome!" I said cheerfully, putting the dex away, "now all we need is to..."
I stopped when I heard footsteps in the distance.
"Okay guys, let's test out this burrow!" I whispered, and we all jumped down the hole in the ground, with Jasmine covered it up with the lid made of nature.
Hardly daring to breath, although it was stuffy down in the cramped burrow. As the footsteps grew closer, I heard voices as well.
"Do ya really think he'd be on this Route?" said one of the voices in a gruff male tone, "this is where he was caught! Surely he wouldn't be stupid enough to hide here again!"
Just what I wanted everyone to think, I thought gleefully.
"Maybe that's just what he wants us to think," said another voice.
Oh screw you, I thought grumpily.
"Still, he hasn't been anywhere else as far as we know," said the first voice. Their voices and footsteps started to fade away.
"Maybe he's already left the country?"
"How could he? No boats or whatnot have been stolen, and I don't think he could Surf on a Croconaw."
"Oh yeah, did you hear about how he got his Pokémon back?"
"Heck yes, that took balls. He's got huge balls."
I struggled to hold in my laughter as the two voices faded into an undistinguishable murmur in the distance.
* * *
"Alrighty gang, listen up," I addressed my Pokémon in the cramped burrow later that evening, "we have to get out of Johto by tomorrow night. We need to find Ledger by then, otherwise we leave without him."
My Pokémon looked at each other sadly.
"I know, I know, I miss him a lot too," I sighed, "but either I escape Johto with you four, or I stay here, get caught and get stuck in prison with none of you. I can't lose all my Pokémon."
There was a heavy feeling in the burrow.
"So Goku," I said, turning to the Croconaw, "we need to get you to evolve to your next stage. I hate to force it onto you, but we gotta do it. But only if you're okay with that."
He thought for a moment, then nodded his head.
"Thanks buddy," I said gratefully, "now, here's the plan. We need to raid the Pokémart for Rare Candies and hopefully Hidden Machine Surf. If we don't find it, then, well... you can swim right Goku?"
He nodded indignantly.
"Well hopefully you'll be able to carry me on your back without knowing that move. And now," I said, pulling out everyone's Pokéballs, "I bid you all goodnight."
* * *
Later that night, I was woken up by a noise outside.
It sounded like a large group of people, maybe five or six. I could hear their voices clearly, so I listened.
"Alright, he's literally nowhere," said one voice, a female.
"He's gotta be hiding somewhere in Johto," said a male voice angrily, "he can't have escaped the region, we have boats patrolling the waters."
"He could've escaped to Kanto," said a deeper voice. There was an uneasy silence.
"Alright then," said the first male voice, "Will, Karen, you two make sure that messages are sent to each Country asking for them to look out for the criminal."
Will, Karen? These guys must've been the Elite Four themselves, I thought, Wow, fancy that, all four of them looking for little old me.
"Bruno, come with me, we're going to double check his hometown," said who could only be Koga. The sound of their footsteps faded into the distance.
Not knowing what to think, I fell back asleep.
* * *
It was the night of the heist. Not knowing what the time was, I cautiously creeped out of the burrow, knowing that it would be the last time I would sleep in it. Walking cautiously through the forest, I eventually came to Route 30, right near Cherrygrove City. It had been ages since i'd been there.
Double checking to make sure that I was wearing all my darkest clothes, I sneaked into the town and over in the direction of the Pokémart.
It was closed, so that meant that it was almost midnight, if not past.
Going around the back where there was no buildings I prepared myself to do the deed in one swift motion.
Here we go, I thought wrapping a shirt around my fist.
Upon breaking the glass, I didn't bother to smooth it out, so I cut myself in several places. Rushing across the room over to the counter, I jumped behind and smashed open the cabinet holding Rare Candies.
Releasing Goku, I wordlessly unwrapped some of the special sweets and he ate them like the greedy thing he was.
I could already here sirens, and I knew that the Cherrygrove Police were coming.
As Goku ate, I searched another cabinet for TMs and HMs. Bingo!
Smashing some more glass, I pulled out the HM and stowed it my pocket for later. I looked over at Goku, and he had already eaten about ten candies.
"C'mon buddy," I murmured, as the Police struggled with the door to the Mart, "c'mon..."
The Police finally broke down the door, but not until Goku started glowing...
"Freeze!" yelled an Officer, but Goku and I were already heading out the back where we broke the window. Goku glowed as he ran, and we rushed to make it to the window before he evolved, as he would never fit...
Before he started growing, I picked him up and threw him out the window. Just in time, because the second he landed on the ground, he started to evolve properly...
"Argh!" I shouted, as and Arcanine came from nowhere and bit my leg hard. I tried to shake it off so I could climb out the window, but he refused to let go...
A massive jet of water whizzed past my ear, and smack bang onto the Arcanine, tearing it from my leg and into a shelf.
Not bothering to wait around, I scrambled out through the window, getting cuts on my cuts.
When I was outside, I saw that Goku had transformed into an awesome, formidable looking Pokémon, standing at seven feet tall. He could now easily carry me through the water.
"Alright Goku, do you think you can you run fast?" The former Croconaw scoffed, and picked me up easily and plonked me onto his back.
"Then let's head that way!" I shouted, pointing at Route 29. It was at this moment that I discovered the speed of this new Pokémon. Tearing away from the Pokémart at speeds I didn't know Goku could run, I clung on for dear life as I heard various Policemen shouting at us.
After half a minute or so, we reached Route 29.
"Alright pal, through these trees!" I shouted, pointing South. Goku made a sharpish turn, and soon he was positively sprinting through the forest.
As we were nearing the ocean, my heart stopped.
"Crap, you still need to learn Surf!" I shouted, frantically waving the HM near his face. He responded by grabbing it in his teeth and threw it away, "Goku?..."
"Feral!" he roared, which I took as being "I don't need a stupid HM to carry you!"
"I hope you're right," I grimaced, and Goku made one last leap into the water.
SPLASH!
"You alright?" I panted, as if i'd done the running. Goku looked back at me, grinning.
"Feraligatr!" he nodded, so I assumed that his new form was just that.
"Okay bud," I said, pulling out my Pokégear for a GPS, one of the Pokégear's newest features, "we need to head... West!"
Goku did just that, and soon we were coming through the water at bigger speeds than before.
"You on the Feraligatr, stop your Pokémon!" Crap, I had forgotten about the water patrol.
"Never!" I shouted, looking behind me. There were two small boats with about four Policemen and their Pokémon on each one.
"You can not escape," said one Officer through a megaphone, "we will pursue until you tire out."
"Come and catch us then," I muttered, "full speed ahead Goku."
We continued on our way. Even though we were going tremendously fast, the boats managed to keep up.
After fifteen minutes, Goku was still going strong. Some more Police boats had joined, from both Johto and Kanto, bringing the total boats to about eight. In the distance, I spotted the Sevii Islands.
"How are you doing bud?" I said, managing to grab a berry from my backpack and feed it to him. He seemed grateful, but was still gradually slowing down.
It could've been over. The Police boats were gaining on us, and we wouldn't get through the Sevii Islands before they surrounded us.
But I had an idea. Grabbing a Pokéball from my backpack, I released onto Goku just in front of me.
"Sorry to call you out like this Ricki," I said, patting her on the head, "but I need you to shock the water behind us." She seemed scared of the suggestion, peering down into the deep water.
"Don't worry, I'll hold your tail," i said reassuringly, and doing just that, the brave Luxio crept around behind me to face the water.
"Wait for it..." I said, waiting for the boats to get closer, "waaaiiit for it..."
The boats were now only fifty metres away.
"GO, DISCHARGE TO THE WATER!" I yelled. This was our only hope.
"LUXIO!" shouted Ricki, hitting the water with a powerful flare of electricity.
The effect was beautiful.
Lighting up all the water behind us, the electricity caused huge waves fused with lightning to crash into the boats, sending them flying in all directions. The 'thunder water' didn't stop there, and I wondered if it'd keep going until it hit shore. It certainly lit up night as much as the sun would.
"Brilliant job Ricki!" I cheered, giving her a one armed hug, "we're on our way to freedom!"
Looking back, I saw the Policemen clambering onto their upturned boats whilst looking at Goku, Ricki and I in disbelief.
As Goku continued swimming throughout the night, I felt many things.
Angry; at Team Rocket for being the cause of this.
Worried; would we be safe in Hoenn?
Sad; I wouldn't see my parents, or Ledger, for a very long time.
Happy; We were free.
At last.